Share this story

November 2015

Agenda

Author: Parkinson's Life editorsPublished: 1 November 2015

Prep: Cook: Serves:

Head to world’s biggest and most popular marathon course to cheer on runners raising money for Parkinson’s disease charities. Or become a volunteer on the day – with 50,530 finishers in 2014, it’s is a great way to pay it forward for a future marathon.

Throughout November President Obama encourages all Americans to honour the contributions of caregivers, and pledges to continue to work towards a future where all caregivers know the same support and understanding they show for those they look after.

Join Professor Chris Miller at Kings College hospital as he explains his research into mitochondria, calcium and alpha-synuclei. Using incredibly sensitive microscopes, the team to investigates how alpha-synuclein affects the protein connections between mitochondria and the endoplasmic reticulum.

Join the race to the top of the tallest occupied building in Birmingham, Beetham Tower, the home of the Radisson Blu Hotel, Birmingham. Every step climbed on this tower-running challenge will bring finding a cure closer and improve life for everyone affected by Parkinson’s.

Find tips by joining the one­-hour online seminar, led by the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation and Rebecca Gilbert, MD, PhD, Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology, NYU Langone Medical Center. A recording of this online seminar will be available from 17 November 2015.

Join the Davis Phinney Foundation and local partners for The Victory Summit Parkinson’s symposium for a day of information and inspiration, featuring dynamic presentations from leading movement disorder neurologists and therapists from across the US. Learn about research, treatments and practical tools for living well today with Parkinson’s disease.

IN THE NEWS

Carefully selected news stories from the international Parkinson's community.

3 weeks ago

Excess calcium in brain could cause Parkinson’s

Researchers at the University of Cambridge, UK, have discovered that excess levels of calcium in brain cells may lead to the formation of the toxic clusters that signify Parkinson’s disease. The findings, reported in the journal ‘Nature Communications’, show that calcium can influence the interaction between small membranous structures inside nerve endings, which are important for neuronal signaling in the brain, and alpha-synuclein – the protein associated with Parkinson’s disease. Dr Janin Lautenschläger, the paper’s first author, said: “This is the first time we’ve seen that calcium influences the way alpha-synuclein interacts with synaptic vesicles. We think that alpha-synuclein is almost like a calcium sensor. In the presence of calcium, it changes its structure and how it interacts with its environment, which is likely very important for its normal function.”

Jewish people with Crohn’s disease more likely to carry LRRK2 gene mutation

A scientific study has concluded that there may be a link between Parkinson’s and Crohn’s disease within the Ashkenazi Jewish community. The study’s findings, which were published in the journal ‘Science Translational Medicine’, has found that members of the population with Crohn’s disease are more likely to carry the LRRK2 mutation which is a significant cause of Parkinson’s. Lead researcher Dr Inga Peter, professor of genetics and genomic sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine, New York, US, said: “Crohn’s disease is a complex disorder with multiple genes and environmental factors involved, which disproportionately affects individuals of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry. “The presence of shared LRRK2 mutations in patients with Crohn’s disease and Parkinson’s disease provides refined insight into disease mechanisms and may have major implications for the treatment of these two seemingly unrelated diseases.”

Could caffeine in the blood help diagnose Parkinson’s?

Blood caffeine levels could be promising diagnostic biomarkers for early-stage Parkinson’s, Japanese researchers reported in the journal ‘Neurology’ earlier this month. The study found that people with Parkinson’s had lower levels of caffeine and caffeine metabolites in their blood than people without the disease, at the same consumption rate. Caffeine concentrations also were decreased in Parkinson’s patients with motor fluctuations than in those without Parkinson’s. However, patients in more severe disease stages did not have lower caffeine levels. The study’s authors, Dr David Munoz, University of Toronto, and Dr Shinsuke Fujioka, Fukuoka University, suggested that the “decrease in caffeine metabolites occurs from the earliest stages of Parkinson’s.” They added: “If a future study were to demonstrate similar decreases in caffeine in untreated patients with Parkinson’s […] the implications of the current study would take enormous importance.”